Data Center Power

When it comes to the game of staying one step ahead of the competition, Server Technology (News - Alert) knows a thing or two about how the race works and, accordingly, last week the company announced that all of its intelligent rack mount power distribution units (PDUs) are now Cisco (News - Alert) EnergyWiseTM certified and interoperable with Cisco’s EnergyWise client technology.

And with the certification, the company can proudly boast the fact that it is the only EnergyWise PDU supplier to monitor both Infeed and Outlet Watts for the most accurate and comprehensive data center power consumption.

“Server Technology is the only PDU manufacturer at this time that has passed Cisco’s rigorous Interoperability Verification Testing (IVT) to ensure compatibility with Cisco network gear,” Julie Brown, marketing manager for Server Technology, told TMCnet. “Server Technology is also the only company that can report power information per outlet, with our Per Outlet Power Sensing (POPSTM) units as well as inlet information with our Per Inlet Power Sensing (PIPS) units.”

When coupled with a Cisco network, Server Technology’s intelligent PDUs can allow device power to be accurately monitored, analyzed and controlled to optimize energy consumption and reduce total cost of ownership by conserving energy at the data center rack level.

EnergyWise is a technology foundation based on switches and routers that also extends to non foundation products (PC’s, building controls) or anything that draws power. By relying on third-party partners, Cisco can offer centralized monitoring, auditing and control of network attached devices which allows the existing network to become a platform for energy command and control. Any Server Technology intelligent rack mount Power Distribution Unit (PDU) – with or without POPS/PIPS technology – is certified and interoperable as an endpoint within the Cisco EnergyWise client technology to capture device power information within the existing EnergyWise infrastructure, according to company officials.

When asked what benefits this certification provides Server Technology customers, Brown said, “When customers combine a Cisco network with Server Tech’s intelligent PDUs, they can get the most granular and exact power consumption information of every rack within the data center. Customers can then use this data to get a more comprehensive view of their entire data center, all with the objectives of reducing TCO and achieving green initiatives.”

Echoed Calvin Nicholson, senior director of software and firmware development at Server Technology, the certification makes it easy to monitor the power consumption of every piece of equipment within each rack in the data center using the existing network infrastructure.

“We’re the only company that can report both the outlet information, through our Per Outlet Power Sensing (POPSTM) as well as the inlet information, through our Per Inlet Power Sensing (PIPS) feature – all providing the most granular and accurate power consumption information,” he said.

“Customers can be reassured knowing that our PDUs have been pretested, reducing integration costs, accelerating deployments and minimizing risk of failure,” added Nicholson. “The power information provided by Server Technology’s PDUs at the device level in conjunction with Cisco’s EnergyWise Network will give data center and IT professionals the information they need to control and improve their energy efficiency.”